Monday, May 5, 2014

4 Lifestyle keys for children balance

If you are a mother, you easily know that a child without routine is a confuse child. Ayurveda point certain times during the day and a few tips to make that routine flow for both of you.

Daily Rhythms/Sleep

We also
have daily cycles of doshas in addition to the dosha seasons.They happen twice a day. The first
cycle begins when the sun rises:

5 a.m. to
10 a.m. – Kapha time

10 a.m.
to 2 p.m. – Pitta time

2 p.m. to
6 p.m. – Vatta time

When the
sun sets the second cycle begins:

6 p.m. to
10 p.m. – Kapha time

10 p.m.
to 2 a.m. – Pitta time

2 a.m. to
6 a.m. – Vata time

Your
child will have a sound, restful sleep when going to bed during Kapha time (6
p.m. to 10 p.m.).

The
morning is the time of day that your child will feel energized and naturally
stronger and maybe a bit stiff so good to exercise. Just as the rain creates a
moist environment for a seed to grow into a plant, the body makes mucus to
lubricate the body. So some children have a runny nose on rising in the
morning.

The
midday summer cycle is from10 a.m. to 2 p.m. when the sun is highest and the
digestive system is powerful so a good time to eat a large meal for fuel for
the rest of the day.

The
winter cycle from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. is a busy time for the nervous system. These
three cycles repeat themselves in the second half of the daily cycle, from
sunset to sunrise.

Exercise/Play

Knowing
your children’s kid-types will help you to choose sports and physical
activities that they like. This will give them a good start to make exercise
and play a part of their life.

Breathing for Health

Breathing
is key to your child’s health so proper breathing is a good foundation to
develop in the early years of life. The practice of nasal breathing has been
used for thousands of years.People learned that their children caught fewer colds with nasal
breathing.There is a reason for
this. It creates a stronger nervous system and intelligence.It also allows access to the more
subtle energies of the body.

Babies
naturally do nasal breathing and as children get older they often start to do
mouth breathing. In the past, parents learned to turn their children on their
sides and to close their lips to have nasal breathing.

Why nasal breathing for your child?

Breathing
through the nose delivers the air deeper into the lobes of the lungs. The
inside of the nose has turbinates which act like turbines causing a more
rotating, forceful stream of air.

Breathing
into the lower part of the lungs helps as 60% to 80% of the lung’s blood supply
is there for the oxygen gas exchange. The nerve receptors for the
parasympathetic nervous system are more concentrated into the lower lobes of
the lungs. This system creates the relaxation response in the body, increases
immunity and digestion as well as decreasing the heart rate.

Breathing
through the mouth or when a child is crying moves the air to the upper lobes of
the lungs. Here the stress receptors are located which are connected with the
sympathetic nervous system – the “fight or flight response.”Bringing a screaming baby to the
mother’s breast creates instant calm as the babies need to breathe through
their noses and removes this stress response.

Knowing
this it makes sense to breathe into all five lobes of the lung.Children who do nasal breathing develop
calmness and peace on the inside and are better able to manage the stressful
life situation on the outside.

For the
most part, before 7 years of age children are natural breathers unless they
develop the habit of mouth breathing. They breathe like babies, with the tummy
(navel point) moving out in the inhale and in and up on the exhale.

Practice
the “natural breath” with your children.It is a simple breath sitting in easy pose with the spine straight.You can make it fun by suggesting the
lungs are like a balloon being blown up.

Hydration

Another
secret for good health and to prevent infection is drinking enough pure water
to stay fully hydrated. Warm water or room temperature water is much better to
drink for good digestion.

Children
are exposed to soft drinks which are very sweet and not providing good
hydration. One tip to get your child used to drinks with less sugar, caffeine (dehydrating
as a diuretic), preservatives, coloring agents etc. is to dilute fruit juices
with water and use juices with no added sugar. You will have a calm, happy
child instead of a hyperactive and dehydrated child.

Of course there is no fast rule on this
as children occasionally like treats, like a soft drink or pizza. You can
slowly introduce pure water into your child’s diet e.g. a bottle of water in
the lunch box.

A good
guideline for good hydration is that your child will urinate 6 times a day and
the urine is clear and a very pale yellow color.